Cloaks
by AliVal13
Summary: Roxas is a simple boy who lives in Twilight Town who one day sees a strange, tall redhead. After that day, his world begins to slowly turn upside-down and an accidental romance forbidden to bloom begins without any sign of stopping.
1. The Flower Festival

DISCLAIMER - I do not own Kingdom Hearts.

WARNING - Homosexuality

RANT - This is another role play a friend and I did together we're both very inlove with. One of the best we ever did, or so we think so. I really don't have that much AxelRoxas stuff, and being as I absolutely love them to death, I wanted to have more... soooo, I decided to start adding this up here.

I hope everyone likes this as much as me and my role play buddeh do. And no worries, no OC's.

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><p>It was another lovely summer day in Twilight Town, the last summer just before college. Four local high school students were enjoying their last days together in the warm sun at their own school, participating in the Annual Flower Festival. Blossoms of every kind could be found either blooming from a pot or sprouting naturally from the ground, in a variety of shapes and colors. A perfect place for a group of friends to enjoy some peace-<p>

"This is a waste of our time. Why did you have to pick _this_ place? Don't we suffer enough during the year?"

Or rather, there would be peace... if only everyone enjoyed flowers. A blond with camouflage pants was looking less then enthusiastic, arms crossed and a defiant frown on his face. He 'hmph'ed when asked what he thought of a supposedly rare petunia, scoffed at the butterbells, and even turned his nose up at the large daisy heads.

No one else seemed to be having a problem with the festival at least. A shorter, chubbier teen even chuckled at the blond.

"Roxas and I don't mind it."

"Yeah, well Roxas is gay and you like shopping, so you're practically gay."

"Hey, being gay doesn't automatically mean you love all the girly things in life." Began Roxas, placing his hands on hips and smiling in an amused way at his friend, "I hate shopping. Don't you remember when Olette tried to force me to the local thrift shop to get new pants?"

"You're both just sour," Olette said, forcing the group to pause near a booth giving out more flower themed merchandise. For five munny, she got each of her friends a flower hairclip, all daisies. In her own hair, she placed a yellow daisy clip, then moved to her chubby friend to put a red daisy clip in his.

"Thanks Olette," he grinned. "How's it look?"

"You're gorgeous, Pence!" Olette said cheerfully. She put a blue one in Roxas's hair and a white one in Hayner's. "We all agreed it was my turn to choose what we do today, and I chose the festival. I expect you to at least _pretend_to have fun with me."

"Don't look at me." Roxas adjusted the clip, which was flattening his spikes in his blond hair. Once satisfied, he smiled at his brunet female friend. "I like flowers."

Hayner took the clip out of his hair as soon as it was in.

"I don't do girly." He stated gruffly, but put the clip on his jacket instead all the same.

"You'd rather do manly things with manly men," Olette teased lightly. "Im surprised you're the straight one. Roxas at least enjoys some aspects of his feminine side."

Pence chuckled under his breath as Roxas started to laugh, but then both hid their amusement behind a series of coughing as Hayner turned to glare at them.

Hayner turned back to Olette, "I'm surprised Pence is straight." He stated simply. "And what the hell makes you think being 'manly' makes you gay? It's when you explore your feminine side you become gay, moron."

Roxas was digging into his ear with his pinky, not bothering to cover a loud, wet burp. "What'cha say?"

"Sensitive men attract the women," Pence said simply.

"Hence why Pence has been dating pretty girls for as long as we've known him." Olette confirmed. "Whereas you, Hayner, only attract the bulky headed guys. Like Seifer. I am _positive_he is hitting on you."

"And don't forget when w_e_ dated, Olette. Kind of have to be attracted to date someone for, what was it, three months?" Hayner reminded, almost smuggly. "Though, you _do_ look like a bulky man."

Roxas took a few steps back. "And here come the fireworks..." He murmured.

"And we broke up mutually because the attraction wasn't real. Let it go!"

"No, we broke up because you're _needy_ and _annoying._"

"No, we broke up because you'd rather be training for the Struggle Tournament every second of your life then spend time with me!"

"Oh, come on- don't fight. We came here to have fun right?" Pence began gently, forcing himself between the two warring factions. The more the two spoke, the closer they moved in to each other- and the closer they become, the louder they got. Soon, half the crowd at the festival was watching.

"Of course, if Heyner would loosen up a little." Olette scowled, her voice calmer.

"I can't. It's rather hard when she's trying to force me to be girly, and then saying if I don't- I _must_be gay." Hayner looked at Roxas. "Not that I have a problem with you being gay, I just can't find men attractive."

Roxas shrugged. "Just leave me out of it and I could care less."

"It was a joke Hayner, can't you take a joke anymore?" Olette huffed. "And another thing- "

"Hey, hey..." Pence began again, having to hold his hands out to keep the two apart. "Not now... We're all friends here and we don't have many days left before college. Lets just try to have fun, okay?"

"You always make that 'joke'," Hayner began, not listening to Pence at all. "Just admit you're still pissed I broke up with you, so now you're determined to prove there was a reason beyond your control! I'm not gay, get over it!" He ended with a growl.

Roxas began to back off again.

_Let the mediator handle it. I'd just make things worse anyway. _Roxas chuckled, slowly easing his way around the corner of the main school building, where all the merchandise and small flowers were being sold. _Pence is probably the only reason Olette and Hayner are still friends._

Pence let out a long sigh, pointing out each party's agreeable stand points, correcting one another's wrongs, but never really taking a side. Olette and Heyner's voices rose, and the argument just escalated. But Pence would try... and keep trying, until there was peace.

Roxas, on the other hand, began to jog away as soon as he was out of sight, following the path of the sidewalk along the edge of the school He chuckled, just able to hear Hayner declaring a loud, "look what you did! You scared Roxas off!" as he turned another corner. He only slowed down when he was at the back of the building, sighing to himself as he shook his head at the thought of his friends. However, he was smiling still, so his good mood had not dropped.

Now that he was away from the chaos between his best friends, he decided to take his time in walking down the sidewalk, which turned into a dirt path. Here, as the concrete became small rocks and soil, was a thick garden on both sides full of beautiful, multi-colored perennial flowers. Some were long, drooping and purple, others were yellow and short. Roxas wasn't exactly fluent in knowing the different types of flowers, but he did recognize the Columbine flower, despite it not being native to Twilight Town, and tall lavenders. At the end of the trail, when the flowers abruptly ended, was another larger dirt trail leading to what one could tell were many greenhouses, sitting just behind the school's property line where Roxas knew the rarer, special care plants were being sold. This is the place that the thick cherry blossom trees would grow, leading the way to the greenhouses.

Despite having some money in his pocket, Roxas wasn't planning to buy anything. Especially not the nicer plants in the greenhouses. Long ago his mother had decided Roxas wasn't allowed a type of pet, not even a plant, as every time he'd bring home a fish or a flower to care for, and though he tried so hard, they always ended up dead... and Roxas would freak out for hours, afraid to touch anything else for fear he'd kill that to. To stop the madness, his mother threatened to beat him with a frying pan if he brought anything else home. However, none of that deterred his appreciation for the beauty of the trees. About this time during the summer, they would begin the slow process of drooping for the fall. In Roxas's opinion, it was the prettiest time to see them.

He stopped in surprise at the beginning of the aisle of cherry blossoms, curiously peaking at a rather odd sight. The people who would come to visit the school for the flowers would always wear clothes to match the festival; light colors and flowing garments, loose shorts, or pants. It was strange to see someone a complete opposite of the cherry pink trees and pearl colored dirt path...

The odd sight that stopped Roxas in his tracks was actually a man, standing perfectly straight as he stared up into one of the trees, a neutral expression on his pointed, pale face and long hands on his narrow hips. His hair was a firey red, a deep contrast to the petals falling to the ground, and he was wearing what appeared to be a long, tight, and very heavy looking black leather coat. The male was extremely tall, almost three heads above Roxas, and very _very_ skinny.

Roxas tilted his head, barely taking a few steps forward before stopping again. This redhead looked so abnormal, yet also... extremely attractive. Roxas felt his skin begin to heat up, but willed his tan face to hold back from turning pink.

_I wonder what he's staring at..._ Roxas tried to look without getting too close, then shook his head as he remembered it didn't matter. _Probably just the trees anyway._

The wind began to blow, the breeze lifting up the fallen sakura off the ground in a small tornado of pink. The wind tunnel went unseen by the stranger, whose long hair and shoulders were catching some of the petals, which he didn't bother to brush off.

_This is actually kind of... What's the word for it?_ Roxas thought, staring at the man without realizing he was, a small smile gracing his face once again. _What's the word Olette uses all the time? Cute? No, this isn't cute at all. Lestatic? No... Romantic? Yeah, that's it... This feels kind of romantic._

The tall redhead let out a short breath, turning his head to look in Roxas's direction. His eyes were an emerald green, vibrant and sharp. Beneath them were small, black, upsidedown triangles, most likely tattoos. His cat-like green eyes held Roxas's gaze for what seemed like forever. Then, he turned on the heel of his highboot and walked off toward what seemed like the greenhouses.

Roxas felt disappointed, partly in himself for not doing anything to keep the man's attention, but mostly because the scene had to end.

_What was that about? ...Maybe he just doesn't like people staring?_ Roxas shrugged it off. _Oh well. Even if I did piss him off, not like I'll ever see him again. He's just some wandering tourist, after all._

Roxas decided it was okay to walk forward, moving to stand where the tall red-head had been and looking up in the same way (though he had to stand on his tippy-toes to come close to the redhead's height). He peeked in curiously.

"Huh...? Oh no..."

There was a dead mother bird hanging on a branch, a nest just above her with two newborn babies. They were crying for their mother, and to Roxas's ears- as inexperienced as they were to bird calls, they sounded like they were hungy. Roxas slowly lowered to his heels, frowning sadly into the tree.

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><p>Okay, so there it is. Chapter one. And this is gonna be a looooong fanfiction. Well, not THAT long, but like... a good many chapters.<p>

Read, please review, and no flames.


	2. Ice Cream and Twilight

Yay! Luckily for you readers, this one can be updated pretty often. We really love this role play, seriously.

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><p>It was late into the afternoon when the peace was finally restored. Roxas met up with his friends at the icecream parlor after the festival. To make sure the peace remained, Pence and Roxas sat between Olette and Heyner with Pence closer to Olette. They each had themselves sea-salt icecream.<p>

Roxas was listening to another bad joke Hayner had heard earlier that day, laughing despite how corny it was, then turning his eyes away to his ice cream. He had a neutral smile on his face, as he almost always did, as he thought of the simple scene from before. It kept playing over and over again in his head like a broken record that couldn't be stopped, but many times more pleasant.

_A tall, hansom stranger... Untamed hair covered in petals, flying gently along a breeze... An ere of mystery behind beautiful eyes of perfect emerald... _Even his thoughts seemed far away and slightly broken, he was so distracted.

"Hey Roxas," Pence began, licking his icecream. "You seem a little distracted, what's up?"

Roxas jumped as he was addressed, turning to look at Pence with his usual small smile. "Oh, just thinking about something I saw earlier."

"Oh? What did you see?" Olette asked sweetly. "Is it something interesting for us to do tomorrow? It's your turn coming up."

It took a lot of energy for Roxas not to cackle pervertedly at that comment, instead clearing his throat.

_You're 17, not 10._"The fair is coming up." He said simply.

"You saw them setting up already?" Olette asked, looking eager.

"That can't be right, the fair is next week. They start preparations on monday," Pence said.

"Oh yea.."

"I just commented it was coming soon, I didn't say they were ready or anything yet." Roxas replied with a chuckle. "...I'll worry about what we do when my day comes. Pence's is tomorrow." He looked at his tubby friend. "Well?"

"I kinda wanted to go to the beach," Pence said. "We haven't gone all summer, if you think about it. Except that one time, then Seifer and his cronies chased us off."

Roxas nodded. "Sounds like fun."

"Only one problem." Hayner finally interjected. "No money. We barely had enough for ice cream."

"I have some left from the festival." Olette reached into her pocket, pulling out her hand sewn wallet. She poured out what coins she had, counting them. "... One-hundred-and-sixty-three... I shouldn't have bought those scones..."

"Don't worry, Olette," Pence said. "Those scones were tastey." He grinned. Everyone knew he loved food. "Maybe we can take up those part time jobs again?"

Roxas suddenly seemed disgruntled. "I hate the poster run..." He huffed. "I have to jump across buildings, climb walls- I was almost run over by the street car once!"

"Well, we can always do something else... like hull trash up that hill." Pence said.

Olette made a face. "Ew! Do you remember what happened last time? The bag burst because Hayner hit it too hard when we were trying to get it up the hill!"

"...What about delivering mail?" Roxas suggested suddenly.

"They wouldn't need all of us for that. There are so few letters to deliver... How about one of us deliver mail, and the rest of us handle the bee situation downtown?" Hayner supplied.

"I dont think I can handle the stinging," both Olette and Pence said at once.

"Let Olette handle mail." Roxas said first, then added. "Hayner, you can handle the bees." Hayner rolled his eyes. "Me and Pence can do the street act and handle the garbage."

"I like that idea," Olette said happily. And they all agreed. Tomorrow morning they would handle the jobs, then by the afternoon have enough to go to the beach.

Roxas nodded in agreement. They all left the shop together a few moments later, Pence walking Olette home from the shop and Hayner lived in a whole other direction, which meant Roxas was left to walk home alone. He moved down the side-walk, which stood beside the street car tracks, over a bridge, then around a curve... suddenly stopping in his tracks as he turned the corner toward home. His bright blue eyes went wide in surprise and recognition, staring with his breath caught in his throat at the entrance into the next sector. Roxas had to take a moment to remember he couldn't live very long without breathing, forcing himself to remember the basic functions of his body- like blinking and shutting his gaping mouth.

Standing there in the near darkness was the man from before, the one he had seen at he flower festival. Roxas stood a good few feet away from him, but began to back up slowly to keep from being noticed right away. The blond watched with pleasant amazement at the man he was sure he'd never see again, noting the redhead's eyes were once again averted upward, staring intently at something. Roxas could just make out a slightly crumpled piece of paper in the man's gloved hands.

The redhead finally looked down after another second or two, which felt like a millenia to Roxas, in order to scribble something down on the paper. He crumpled it further in his fist once he was finished.

Roxas tilted his head like before, more curious then the last time he saw the man to see what he was looking at. The sunset stood behind him, causing his shadow to elongate until it was near the redhead's feet, moving as he moved. _I wonder what he's doing?_

The redhead stood there for what seemed like a long while before he looked down at his feet. His own shadow was off to the right, but the one on his left... He trailed his eyes over to where Roxas was peaking, then quirked a brow once he made eye contact.

Roxas jumped visibly, as if surprised to have been caught staring... again. He just smiled and waved casually, as if he were looking at Hayner or Olette (he would do the French Wave with Pence).

The tall man didn't smile or return the greeting, however. In fact, he didn't show any emotion at all. He just turned, walking in the opposite direction away from Roxas like he had before. Where he once stood was just that piece of paper, smashed into a ball.

Roxas felt disappointed again, nearly pouting. Instead, he frowned as his hand stood in the air a moment longer, slowly drooping down to his side. He moved toward where the man had stood, since he had to pass by there to get home anyway, stopping at the piece of paper. He contemplated picking it up and reading it, but that was rude...

_Then again, the guy_ did _discard it in a very public place, losing all private privileges. Not to mention he's probably long gone by now._He bent down, picking up the paper and unfolding the scraggly note.

Inside the paper was a mess of drawings and words. It looked like a bunch of scribbles and lines, as well as a very messy scrawl of notes. They read things like "train station A" or had the names of the streets. It appeared to be a map. And as Roxas looked up in the same direction the man had been peering, the first thing he saw was a sign- a street sign with the bold letters "Market Place Plaza Rd." written on the green background in white. Roxas turned back, noting what seemed to be a new mark with the street sign written on it.

Roxas tilted his head. "... He must have been lost." He decided, folding the paper up neatly. "And got frustrated." Roxas chuckled to himself, pocketing the somewhat-a-map. "Most people do."

He walked toward home again once the paper was secured away, moving to rub his exposed arms. The air suddenly turned chilly on the way home.

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><p>Whelp, there's another chapter. x3 These things are a little short... I probably could have just attached this chapter to the last one, honestly, but oh well.<p> 


	3. Earning Money

Hm, not much to say this time. Weird... Ah well, enjoy the new chapter? I hope it hasn't been too confusing so far.

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><p>It was around noon the next day when Pence and Roxas were at the street corner, preparing for the Street Act. The performance itself was extremely simple, just the ball toss and some juggling with pins. Nothing fantastic or complicated, yet it never failed to bring in some sort of crowd- especially if it went well. The tourists of Twilight Town were very easily entertained. As the boys were readying themselves, a crowd had already begun to gather curiously around the rope set up create a barrier.<p>

Roxas was smiling lightly as he normally would as they finished up and were finally ready after a few more seconds of preparation, grabbing one stick each to begin the day's act with the ball toss. It was in no way spectacular, but the crowd always loved it. It would begin with Roxas knocking the ball into the air and then would turn into a game to see how long the ball could stay up, using the stick only to keep it in the air. Sometimes, to keep it somewhat interesting, Roxas would be expected to play with the crowd- tossing the ball back and forth between the kids and their parents and counting loudly how many hits the ball has taken. The longer it stayed in the air, the more people came to watch- and as more people would come to watch, the more the boys would be paid.

"A very simple, but very cost effective act." Explained the young girl who had hired them, despite knowing they had heard the instructions a thousand times before.

Roxas nodded to her, then she moved to walk away and stand along the side lines.

"Alright, Pence... I'll go first, then you. That okay?"

"That's fine," Pence nodded, holding the ball in his hands. "Tell me when you're ready."

Roxas walked out to the middle of the open circle the crowd was made to stand outside of. He had the stick he'd use in hand, turning to Pence and waiting. "Okay, throw!"

Pence tossed the ball into the air, the crowd immediately started to clap. Some had witnessed the act before, already counting out loud. Among the people standing was a familiar, tall man in a black cloak. He had his hood up this time, some of his red hair falling over his shoulders from the bottom. However, Roxas hadn't noticed him, too busy concentrating on the ball.

Roxas knocked the ball high into the air from an angle, causing it to spin rapidly as it descended down. He lifted his stick up, using the tip to balance the spinning ball in the air a moment before hitting it back toward the sky again. He did a few more very simple tricks like that, as well as anything and everything you could do with a plain ball- finally giving it a few tiny hits to calm its rapid jumping so when he tossed it over to the kids lining the area, they could hit it back easier. Even the adults seemed excited about hitting the ball, some carrying their kids on their shoulders.

The tourists laughed as they gently hit the ball back into the air, then back to the performer. A few more times the ball came back, right over the man in the cloak. He gently bumped it back up like the rest of the tourists had, then right back to Roxas.

Roxas caught the ball easily, tapping it a few more times. The crowd was still counting out loud, up to two-hundred-and-thirty. He turned to look at Pence.

"Now that I've broken my personal record," Roxas began, having to call to Pence a little louder over the noise of the crowd, "I'm a bit thirsty. Ready to trade?"

Pence nodded, having his own stick at the ready. He nodded to Roxas, ready to recieve the ball. Roxas tossed it over, then quickly switched places. Pence kept the ball up, and though he wasn't as good as Roxas when it came to doing the tricks, he could toss it up pretty high and keep it at a good distance. Despite the simplicity of the ball toss, it still left Roxas very sweaty and a little exhausted. He shook his matted head out as he left the area with the crowd and over to a nearby slushie stand... not noticing as he was silently being followed by the tall man in the black cloak.

As Roxas moved to take a seat in one of the cheap stools at the stand, the man stepped in beside him.

"What can I do for you?" the man in the paper hat and colored apron asked Roxas first.

Roxas didn't notice the man behind him, just smiling at the man with a hat. "Sea-salt slushie, please."

The worker nodded, going on to prepare Roxas's frozen treat. He handed him the styrofoam cup and the bendy straw to stick in the middle. "And for you sir?" He asked the cloaked man next. "Might I offer you The Brainfreeze? Its a hot, hot day and that jacket looks awfully heavy."

"Bottled waster is all I want," the redhead said, placing the munny on the counter. The worker nodded, handing over the iced water.

Roxas had just wrapped his peach colored lips over the straw, stopping mid-suck and turning to look at the man. He blinked, nearly choking on what had been left in his mouth. He recognized the black coat immediately, and though he couldn't see his face, he saw the firey hair barely hanging out of the hood. However, recognizing those things could still be considered normal, even if he had only seen the redhead twice now... The creepy part, which disturbed even himself somewhat, was that Roxas recognized the man's clothed body.

Roxas looked to the redhead's hips, his height, his shoulders, and waist... the curve of his ass under the jacket... and was able to tell it was the same man from before. He knew the man he had only seen three times, including now, by recognizing his body. Roxas blushed, feeling a little ashamed of himself.

The cloaked male uncapped his water, taking a long drink from it, draining half the contents.

_He's probably ridiculously hot in that jacket_, Roxas thought as he watched the man turn away and begin walking down the street, in a direction he recognized as toward the Sandlot. Roxas was a little disappointed when the man didn't even look at him this time. However, Roxas had a little more courage then he had their last two encounters. So, after gulping down one more big sip of his slushie and without a second thought to the possible consequences, Roxas stood from the stool and moved to follow. He didn't know what compelled him to do it, and this meant he was technically walking out on a job half-way through, unless he could somehow get back in time for the second half... But he didn't care or could even think to care about it right now. He walked after the cloaked figure as stealthily as he could.

The redheaded man didn't even savor the rest of his water, tossing the bottle into a nearby trashcan. He seemed to be taking his time, looking around slowly and studying the area a moment, before moving to reach into his sleeve. It seemed he was expecting to pull somehow out as he dug around, pausing in his tracks as whatever he was trying to find couldn't be found. He searched through both sleeves, even shaking them, but nothing came out. In a frustrated move, the redhead began to pat down the rest of his cloak, huffing as he still found nothing.

Roxas stopped in his own tracks, jumping behind some large barrels that stood outside a small wine brewery. He looked around side of one large barrel, gently pressing his hands into the wood and steel rim as he studied the other carefully.

_What is he looking for...?_

"Guess I'll have to draw a new one," he murmured to himself. "The boss is gonna kill me..." He walked onward, shoulders slumping for only a moment. He pulled his hood down, shaking out his hair.

_Draw a new one?_ Roxas blinked, confused by that statement at first, then an idea suddely struck him.

Like most other men around the world, he was the type to wear the same pants without cleaning them for at least three weeks, so of course he had the same pants from yesterday. And he still had the chocolate crispy from last week in there to. He pulled out the piece of paper he had picked up from yesterday, throwing the moldy crispy aside, then trying to wipe the chocolate off as much as he could quickly. Once the paper was as clean as it could be, he ran up to the stressed out red-head- tapping his high shoulder gently.

He paused again, looking down at Roxas with those same sharp eyes from before. He blinked twice, seeming to be caught off guard. "... Can I help you?"

Roxas unfolded the paper, smiling as he showed it to him. "You... dropped this."

Two long fingers moved to pull the paper away from Roxas, looking at it carefully. The same lines and notes were there, as well as some... He brought the paper close to his face to inspect it. He smelled, "... chocolate?"

Roxas gave a nervous chuckle. "I... forgot I had food in that pocket... Sorry." He waved a hand, turning around to leave- jogging back toward the court.

The redhead quirked a brow, watching Roxas run off. He shook his head, using a pen he kept to scribble down more notes on the available space he had on the paper. "Weird kid..."

Roxas and Pence did their juggling act next, which was a huge hit- especially when Roxas turned around and started catching the throw pins between his knees and throwing them back over his shoulder to Pence. Afterward was trash duty. First the trash had to be gathered, then pushed up the hill to the compacting facility. Pence always tired out easily, so after picking trash up Roxas had told him he could go rest and he'd handle hauling the trash. He pushed the cart up the hill, with some difficulty- hitting the cart now and then with the available bat to get it moving when it seemed stuck. It was obvious he had done this a few times already.

Pence went off to get another slushie from the food court as Roxas worked, passing by a man in a black cloak. Pence gave him a strange stare, as he had never seen a man in such a thick dark cloak before, but dismissed him as he passed. He had no way of knowing it was the same man Roxas had seen three times before. The redhead had his hood down for now and was busy drawing lines on that same piece of paper, paying Pence no mind. He looked up around the tight knit buildings as he came to a stop at the bottom of the hill where Roxas was struggling with the garbage, making notes of anything that made the streets unique.

Roxas finally had it at the top of the hill, immediately falling down to the ground. He had his shirt and jacket off, since he was sweating too profusely. He ran a hand through his matted hair and tried to wipe some sweat off from his bare chest, giving a hard sigh.

"Man, that was the heaviest load yet..." He muttered to himself, looking at his shoes.

The man in the cloak was still scribbling on that piece of paper, making note of the town garbage dump. He looked at the open garage, eyeing the large bags of rubbish. He didn't seem to notice, or care, that the blond he had seen before was sitting on the ground just ahead of him.

Roxas stood up, perhaps too soon as he was a bit too wobbily. He ended up tripping on his own two feet as he attempted to stand straight, falling down the front of the hill and rolling down it like a wheel.

"Watch out!" He warned as he tumbled, just able to see someone ahead in the confusion, but they were too close and it was too late. Roxas went head first into the distracted red-head's stomach. They tumbled down the rest of the steep hill together.

The redhead grunted, their tumbling ceasing to a painful stop. Groaning a little, he sat up, bringing the blond on top with him. "Thanks for the warning..."

Roxas rubbed his abused head, quickly looking around. He sighed in relief when no one but them was anywhere near. However, that's about when he noticed just who it was he had landed on. He stared blankly at the the tall man at first, slowly turning a deep cimson.

_It's him! And I'm sitting... I'm sitting... In his lap. Right. In. His. __**LAP**__!_ Roxas's breath halted as he unconsciouly touched the other's jacket where his hands were noting that it was indeed real leather. _I love leather..._

Roxas blushed as deeply as his face and chest could possibly grow, still frozen from shock on top of the redhead. His legs were curled over his hips.

"I, um..."

The redhead below him quirked a brow, seemingly unphased. "You what?"

Roxas moved to stand up, but only fell right back down into the man's lap, wincing and grabbing his knee.

"Sorry..." He replied quietly. He tried again, this time without putting a lot of weight on that knee. He stumbled up, but was able to stand straight. He held a hand out to help the red-head up. "Sorry about that. I should have given myself some time to rest before trying to stand up again. Last time, I rolled into a fruit cart." He chuckled, giving his usual smile.

He took Roxas's hand, stood up, dusted off his cloak, then looked at the paper still clutched in his hand. It was torn slightly. He folded it up and stuffed it back into his sleeve. "No harm done I guess."

Roxas's knee throbbed a bit, but it didn't feel sprained or broken. He'd just put a wrap on it later, he knew Olette carried tons of medical supplies in her purse (all for good reason. Even Pence would occasionally horse play too hard).

"You sure you're okay, er... What's your name?" Roxas asked, both because he wanted to make sure... and because, well, he wanted a name.

"Three times," he murmured, shaking his head. "... the name's Axel."

_Axel... I like that name._"Three times?" Roxas questioned, tilting his head. "You know, it's really dangerous around this block... You shouldn't walk around this area if you don't know where things are."

"This is the third time I ran into you," Axel explained. "This time being a little more literal..." He trailed off, shaking his head. "I'm trying to figure out where everything is."

Roxas seemed embarrassed at that first comment, then brightened up considerably. "Oh! You're making a map, right?" _Oh no... Now he knows I looked at the paper! What if he thinks I'm too nosy?_"A-Anyway, I wouldn't go this way if I were you. The trash compactor is back there and so is the demolish site for the compacted trash. They're having trouble with a bee infestation at the moment..."

Axel didn't say anything about the map, just nodded to the warnings. "Right..." He crossed his arms, "So what were you doing just now? Wouldn't the workers worry about the trash?"

"Odd jobs. Around here... We rely on small shops in the market sector for food, supplies- anything. But all those shops are family-owned, so there are no jobs here besides a bunch of grunt work no one else wants to do." Roxas pointed to the trash bag that was being pulled inside by a worker. "Like that. That and three other bags me and a friend dragged around after collecting it from the shops. We also do street performances to bring in tourist crowds for the food court, help demolish the trash out back, help get rid of the bees when they come in during summer, deliver mail, set up posters... that kind of stuff."

"Sounds like a ball," Axel commented, looking back up at the hill, then up at the sky. The twilight was becoming dark, meaning it was getting late. "... I should go back."

Roxas wanted to ask where Axel was heading, but he kept it to himself. He had been a bit... stalkerish already. He just nodded, moving over to a pole where his shirt and jacket were, pulling his top over his head, then pulling on his jacket. He frowned at the drooping sun.

"Guess we'll have to wait until tomorrow to go to the beach..." He murmured, then turned to look at Axel again. "Well, it was nice meeting you, Axel." He said in his neutral way, giving a wave and a smile before jogging up the hill toward the man waiting to give him his pay.

Axel didn't say anything, just waved over his shoulder as Roxas ran off. He started walking down the street, disappearing around a corner.

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><p>Yepyep. x3 I think the writing might be too simple, but I loves this anyway. This is more for me and mah role play buddeh anyway, not saying I wouldn't want anyone else to like it to.<p>

If you like this, please review and let me know why!


	4. The Tower

I got a new laptop! Yay! I've been without a computer for a few days, feel a litle drained. x.x Anyway, 'nuff about me. Here's the next chapter! Hope everyone enjoys it.

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><p>No matter what fights had gone on throughout the day, no matter what issues were left untouched and therefor still broken, no matter what circumstance that might have befallen the group, the end of the day meant the end of all negative matters. As the sun began to twinkle slowly downward in the horizon, Hayner, Roxas, Pence, and Olette were making themselves comfortable as they would at the end of nearly every day at one of their usual spots- this time the top of the clock tower. The top of the tower was especially important for the end-of-the-day cleansing ritual, as it was decidedly the most peaceful and isolated of all places. Though public, no one dared visit the tower but them- and they treated the place almost as if it were a sacred running ground.<p>

"..." Roxas was staring thoughtfully out into their little world of shops and blue lights, the ice cream in his hand melting away without his notice.

"What'cha thinkin' about?" Pence asked, licking away at his own sea-salt icecream.

Roxas jumped slightly as he was addressed, turning to look at Pence. "Wh-What?"

Hayner gave Roxas a frown. "You've been acting weird since yesterday..."

"Yea," Olette agreed. "You seem distracted. I mean, your icecream is melting all over your hand."

Roxas looked down at his ice cream, quickly switching hands and then flicking the sticky substance into the air, making sure to aim away from the tower.

"What's up, man?" Hayner asked, mid-lick.

"Well..." Roxas turned a bit pink. "I sorta.. met someone."

"Really? Who?" Olette asked, kicking her legs out of habit. She licked up more of her icecream.

"Is it someone we might know?" Pence went on.

Roxas shook his head. Hayner rolled his eyes as the blond's face turned even pinker. He then sighed dramatically, hugging Roxas. "My little queen! Growin' up, discovering boys!"

Roxas pushed him off, giving Hayner a flat look. "No, you wouldn't... He... Just came into town. His name is Axel."

"Is he hot?" Olette giggled, leaning over Pence's lap to give Roxas a mischeivous smile.

Roxas looked away from Olette, eating some of his ice cream as he mumbled, "damn straight..."

Olette sat back up, clapping her hands and smiling in delight. "Are you going to try and ask him out?"

"Don't rush him, Olette." Pence said, laughing. "When you first meet someone you get to know them... you don't want Roxas to scare him away, do you?"

"Oh, I know..." She sighed. "Im just really excited for Roxas."

"Oh, yeah right." Hayner interjected. "Like you only have those pictures of guys making out as your wallpaper because it helps the enviroment."

Roxas chuckled, finishing off what was left of his icecream, then proceeding to clean his fingers off. "Well... He's really distant. I'm pretty sure I've scared him already."

Olette just stuck her tongue out at Hayner.

"Maybe he's just not very social," Pence shrugged.

"He seemed busy all the time... and kind of annoyed. or maybe bored?" Roxas shook his head. "Well... He was nice enough for sure. He's skinny, _really_ tall... Nice shoulders, tattoos under his eyes, awesome hair... Plus a butt that went on for _miles_."

"Glad to see I've been an influence in your life." Hayner stated proudly. If it weren't for Hayner and his brutish ways, Roxas might have ended up a normal, fabulous gay man.

Olette laughed. "Wow, that good looking, huh? So when do we get to meet him?"

"...When you happen to be around when I run into him randomly again." Roxas replied, giving a nervous chuckle. "I honestly don't know if _I'll_ever even see him again. It's all been coincidental, honestly."

"Aww..." Olette pouted.

"How many times did you run into him, anyway?" Pence asked, finishing off his ice cream and pocketing the stick for throwing away later.

"... About three or four times since yesterday. Well, technically four times, but the first time, we just saw each other and didn't do anything. The second time I waved, but he just walked away. The third time I actually spoke to him, and the fourth time I fell on top of him." Roxas nodded in confirmation, sounding perfectly normal.

"You fell on him?" Olette giggled. "How was that for your first technical bodily encounter?"

"Nearly broke my knee, pretty sure he bruised his fine ass. I-I mean, behind." Roxas coughed.

"Aww!" Olette cooed. "You didn't rub it better?"

"Olette, keep your odd fantasies to yourself please." Pence chuckled.

Roxas gawked. "NO!" He replied, blushing horribly... meaning he might not have minded it. He looked out toward the scenery again, taking a long breath to calm his cheeks. "No... But... He didn't seem to mind me. And he gave out his name freely, even after I landed on him half-nude..."

"Half-nude?" Olette's mind was now swimming with all sorts of possibilites. "And how could that HAVE NOT led to alley-way sex!"

Roxas shrugged. "Because I smelled of sweat and nasty trash, for one. Also, I didn't even know his name until he gave it to me after. Plus, I didn't have any condoms on me." _I probably shouldn't have said that, she won't leave me alone for weeks, but I just have to see her reaction._

"Bareback is always good," Olette crossed her arms, nodding affirmitively. Pence started to laugh. "What? Its true!"

"Olette, you need to stop reading that porn..."

Roxas laughed to, though honestly, he had honestly thought about it, mostly by accident. _And since when am I even_ suppose_ to have sex with him, a stranger who _hates _me?_

"Olette, you're crazy." Was all he said out loud, and fondly.

Olette only pouted. "Well, you are going to try and talk to him again, right?" She asked, looking eager.

"If I ever see him again..." Roxas murmured.

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><p>There it is. x3 Reviews would be nice!<p> 


	5. A Train to the Beach

Wheeeee, chapter 5. Whootwhoot. Thanks to everyone who actually reviewed, you have NO CLUE how much I appreciate it. Tells me that I should definitely continue this. Whenever I don't get many reviews for something, I start losing motivation. I mean, with this, it's a little easier since it's not just me writing it, but still. x3

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><p>The next morning came almost too soon as Olette came to knock on Roxas's door.<p>

"Roxas!" She called toward the upper floor windows, her hand pick from knocking. "Roxas you awake yet? We're going to be late meeting Pence and Hayner at the train station!"

Roxas blinked slowly as he began to wake up, Olette's voice barely breaking through. He sat up in bed, his usually spiky tresses looking flat on one side from where he had slept. At first, he still didn't quite register Olette's voice as nothing but some loud noise, turning his blue eyes to the green light of his alarm clock. It took only a second of staring at the time before he was quite suddenly awake, eyes wide with shock.

"OH CRAP! IT'S NOON!"

Roxas jumped out of bed, jerking his blanket and sheets aside. He grabbed a brush and ran it through his hair frantically as he bounced around to knock off his pajamas.

Olette heard the cry of panic, even from a floor below. She stepped back from the door, giggling at him. A second later and Roxas was at the door, looking pink faced and panting.

"I'm s-sorry... Alarm... didn't go... off..." He was in a pair of basic swimming trunks and a t-shirt he had quickly grabbed from the floor that at least appeared clean.

"Don't worry- were you too busy dreaming of a certain tall someone?" Olette was still laughing, earning her a frown, as he came outside and locked the door behind him. She was wearing a one-piece bathing suit, orange with yellow flowers, with a pair of kahki shorts.

Roxas gave Olette another flat look, then let it go with his usual smile. He did have a dream about the red head, but it wasn't anything like a wet dream... Roxas had a dream that Axel was sitting next to him on the clock tower instead of his friends, watching the sunset with him.

"No, I didn't." He yawned after he lied, moving down the steps and onto the side-walk.

"Sure you didn't," Olette said playfully. "Come on, we should hurry. The train leaves in fifteen minutes."

Roxas nodded. Together, they ran down the street and toward the train station. It was strange... As they jogged to their destination, they would occasionally run across people- usually three to a group- all in the same jacket Axel wore. Of course, he knew simply by their body types that they weren't Axel. He was just glad he didn't give the black leather jacket detail to his friends.

"Is there some kind of convention in town?" Olette asked, once they made it to the bottom steps of the train station. A pair of men in black cloaks walked down the steps, not paying the teenagers any mind. "Or is the black cloak thing a new fad?"

Roxas stopped running once they were at the ticket station, Hayner and Pence waving four tickets to tell them they were ready to go from near the train entrance.

"..." Roxas looked at all the cloaked figures, worry etched across his features. _Axel... They all walk the same, ignore the same, everything. Is it a cult?_

"Weird..." Olette wrinkled her nose. "Come on Roxas, or the train will leave." She started up the steps.

Roxas followed after her, but before he could step on the train, he stopped. Some passengers were still stepping off, more cloaked people mostly. He turned his head just in time to let his eyes wander up into a shadowed hood where some red hair was hanging out. A quick glance downwards as the man passed him and Roxas could recognize two dancing hips, which gave Axel away entirely. Roxas stopped at the entrance of the train, just inside the doors, and watched Axel walk away and back into town.

On his way out, Axel, for once, actually bothered to give a second glance to that familiar face. He didn't stop to look as he followed after another man in a black cloak out of the station, but he had looked. Roxas blushed slightly, wondering if he should wave or something...

"Roxas!"

But was grabbed by the collar and forced into the train so the door could close. Roxas jumped in surprise as he was grabbed, then looked at his friends with a laugh.

"Heh, sorry. Got distracted. You know, those coats must be so inconvenient..."

"What coats?" Pence glanced out the train as it started to move, noticing the many heavy-looking leather cloaks. "You mean them? They've been showing up all over the place lately."

"So we saw." Roxas replied, indicating him and Olette.

"And suddenly to..." Hayner added. Down the last length of the train, opposite of them, were more dark cloaks. "What are they, the circus?"

Olette shrugged. "Who knows? Maybe you should ask, Hayner."

"...Olette, you artard. I was the one who _mentioned_the circus." Hayner rolled his eyes.

Roxas sighed.

_Here they go again..._ He thought, deciding to look out the window, trying to relax on the way to the beach as much as possible. _They should just screw already or something, damn..._

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><p>There ya go. Shortish, yes, but still good? I hope so.<p> 


	6. A Deal is Made

Yay updates! Okay, so I want to thank those who have continued to review or are just beginning to! Awesome! Thanks a lot, srsly! I love reviews. It says people really like the stories.

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><p>It was the end of the day and the sun was beginning to set over the horizon. Axel had decided to take the train to the other side of town as he was finishing what he believed to be the last of what he was supposed to do for the map, now walking up to Twilight Hill to finish. However, he stopped when he noticed the blond male he had run into on several occassions laying there at the top of the grassy hill over the train tracks tunnel, taking a nap. He stared at the sleeping teenager, quickly contemplating his options before he decided to walk over to where Roxas lay, sitting next to him quietly. Axel reached into his coat pocket, taking out a cigarette. He lit it as he looked down to study Roxas.<p>

Roxas was curled up on the ground in a semi-fetal position, looking quite content where he laid on the grass. His hair seemed to be somewhat matted and his shirt was wrinkled. Axel turned away casually, as if he hadn't been staring, when Roxas's nose began to scrunch and wiggle, his blue eyes opening slowly.

"Wazburnin'...?" Roxas asked groggily, moving to look up at the red-head.

"Cigarette," Axel said simply, blowing the smoke through his nose. He had his hood down again, looking out towards the sunset. The sun was disappearing slowly over the distant buildings on the entrance side of Twilight Town, the many windows and metal buildings glittering like crystal and turning everything orange.

Roxas blinked to adjust his vision, moving to sit up. He rubbed his eyes for a moment, almost not believing what he was looking at. He moved to curl his fit legs beside im for balance and comfort, slightly wide-eyed.

"Axel...?"

"Mm." Axel responded, taking a long drag before puffing it out. "And you're Roxas, if my memory is correct."

Roxas nodded, adjusting his legs again until they were crossed infront of him. He looked down at the grass and chuckled.

"Never thought you'd ever talk to me first..." He coughed as Axel blew smoke out, catching some in his lungs.

"If it's any comfort, me either." Axel said, pausing to shake some of the ashes from the cancer stick. He looked at the blond as he coughed. "What, don't like smoke?"

"Just... not use to it." Roxas replied plainly, keeping the disappointment out of his voice.

"Hmph," Axel took Roxas's chin in his gloved hand, keeping a firm but less then bruising grip. He leaned in carefully until their lips were hardly an inch apart, as if he might kiss the blond. "Let me help with that."

Axel blew what little smoke he had left in his lungs on Roxas's nose, then smirked as the blond's nose wiggled again. He didn't let go of the teen's chin, not even as Roxas jerked his head quickly to sneeze away from Axel.

"Gah..." Roxas replied, turning back to the red-head with a sniff, just barely suppressing a pout. He looked so disappointed.

Axel let out a breathy chuckle, letting Roxas's face go at last. "Dunno if that made it any better, but you kinda get used to it."

Roxas moved around so that he could sit facing Axel, moving to lean back on his hands. He smiled brightly as he heard Axel chuckle, a light blush gracing his boyish features.

"So... what'cha need? You said you didn't plan on talking to me, ever, so there has to be a reason."

"Maybe I just wanted someone to talk to." Axel said, flicking off more ash. "You seem the type to keep a decent conversation."

"Mmmhmm." Roxas replied in disbelief. "And you seem the type to not care what I say. If I had my guess... I'd say you want my help with that map. If anything."

"My, you're deductive, aren't you?" Axel said, taking one more drag before tossing the dead bud to the side. "More or less. You live here, don't you? I figured you'd know every nook and cranny of this town."

"More then most. My parents are still surprised I'm alive." Roxas said, shrugging his shoulders... then coughing once more.

Axel chuckled again. "I bet... think you can show me every secret of this town?"

Roxas tapped his chin thoughtfully, giving the red-head an amused smirk.

"Hmm... I don't know... I mean, what do I get out of it?"

"Dunno, never thought of that, but I figured I wouldn't get a yes right away either." Axel ran a hand through his wild, red hair. "How about about I do you a favor in return?"

Roxas twitched slightly at hearing that, his smile a little strained. He coughed, as if from the cigarette again, regaining his composure. _Suppressing dirty thoughts, suppressing dirty thoughts... entering my clean space._

"Like what?" Roxas asked, tilting his head. "I don't like letting people buy things for me, so there's no easy way out for you."

"Think of something you want, want done, or something you don't want to do by yourself and I'll get it and/or do it for you in exchange for your help." Axel said. "Sound fair?"

"I guess." Roxas said, mocking disinterest. He smiled again. "...But, I'll decide later." He moved to stand up, dusting himself off. "Meet me here tomorrow in the afternoon... I'd start today, but I'm still half wet."

"From what?" Axel quirked a brow.

Roxas chuckled.

"From the beach. I went swimming today, got back I think an hour ago." He tilted his head again at Axel. "You can take the train to the Destiny Island beaches. Kind of expensive and it takes a while to get there, but it's fun."

Axel nodded. "I see. I'll make a note of that." He stood up and started to walk away from Roxas. "I'll see you tomorrow. Thanks..." He face turned expressionless as it usually was when around Roxas, distractedly making his way off the hill. _I have to turn in what I already wrote down. The boss is already mad it's been taking me so long to finish my job..._

Roxas looked thoughtful again as he watched Axel walk away. He wanted to give the guy a hug or something... So he did. Roxas ran up behind Axel, wrapping his arms around that tiny waist and squeezing him.

"Welcome to Twilight Town." Was all he said before jogging away, disappearing around a corner. He could hear his friends calling his name.

Axel blinked, surprised at the sudden contact. He was left speechless as Roxas ran around the corner. He sighed, ignoring the heat in his cheeks. He walked off towards the train station, feeling a little miffed and strangely... a little happy.

Roxas was feeling excited, his cheeks a deep red as he ran to meet up with Olette, Hayner, and Pence. He was absolutely delighted, not even angry that his friends had just left him there to sleep at all.

"I love you guys." he said, a big grin on his face. He ran a hand through his salty hair.

"Eh..?" Olette was just about to offer a little boxed cake they bought with the left over money. It was a "we're sorry for leaving you alone for so long!" present. "Well, we love you too... what happened?"

"Yeah, you look so happy." Pence pointed out, lookimg mildly surprised.

Hayner twitched. "... He has the same look he had when we gave him his first vibrator last year."

Roxas just gave Hayner a flat look, but then smiled and walked around them. "Oh, nothing... nothing... Just, such a beautiful day, right? Right."

"Oh, let me guess... you saw Mr. Tall-and-Sexy again didn't you?" Olette squealed with delight, dropping the box of cake. Pence caught it, thankfully.

"I hugged him and I'm spending the day with him tomorrow." Roxas suddenly jerked to a stop, turning to look at the other three. "Oh... Um. Tomorrow is my day anyway... So, um... Is it okay?"

Hayner just huffed and turned his head away. He always got jealous if Roxas started hanging out with someone else.

Olette rolled her eyes, nudging him. "Don't be so sour, Roxas finally found someone he really likes. Right Pence?"

"Oh, sure..." Pence was trying to be neutral, as always. "I mean, we can't force Roxas to hang out with us _all_the time. Last days before college or not."

"But afterwards we get to meet him!" Olette pressed.

Roxas twitched. "Uhhh.. now, I don't-"

"Yeah. He better be hot or I'll never forgive you." Hayner stated, still looking huffy.

Roxas laughed nervously. _Well... maybe I can I warn Axel to run before they get the chance to actually speak to him? It's not that I mind them meeting him, just... Ugh._"Oh, fine... But you may not like him."

"And why not?" Hayner asked, scowling at Roxas/

"Well... You just might... not."

"Now you don't know that," Olette said.

"If you like him this much, I know we'll like him too." Pence said encouragingly.

"..." _I'm not so sure... If I even _mentioned_ the word 'cigarette', I already know what they would say... Not to mention he's apparently one of the dark cloaks, and they aren't exactly getting a good reputation. If they knew he smoked alone, they'd want me to stop seeing him... Then again, maybe I'm just thinking too much about it?_ However, all he did was smile and say, "Thanks", outloud.

"No problem." Pence said, then glanced at his watch. "We better hurry up, the train's going to leave soon. Don't want to get stuck on this side like we did last time."

Everyone nodded and they all walked toward the station.

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><p>Okay, so this one was written slightly weird on purpose. You'll notice this chapter starts out from Axel's point of view then shifts to Roxas's without any section breaking markers. I hope I did a good job transitioning perspectives, as I don't like adding those section markers in fics where it might look funny.<p> 


	7. A Date Sort of?

Okay, so we are currently on chapter 7. I'm glad to say there are a good many chapters I can still update with, but do recall this is an ongoing role play thingy and that means if I update REALLY REALLY fast now, you'll have to wait FOREVER for it to be continued. So I'm updating at a slow pace both because life is busy and because I don't want to have to force anyone to wait months for an update.

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><p>The next morning, Axel waited atop Twilight Hill as promised. He still had on his same black cloak, but the temperature was thankfully colder, despite being the summer. He watched as some residence passed by in sweaters or thin cotton jackets, but he didn't pay attention to them for too long. He lit another cigarette, putting the bud between his lips and taking a few short puffs.<p>

Roxas came walking up toward Axel as quietly as he could, wearing a black and white turtle neck with his usual pants. The sleeves and collar were black, while the body itself was white. Though he was trying to be stealthy in the hopes of playfully surprising the red-head, a cough unfortunately gave him away right as he was behind Axel.

"I'll never get use to that smell..."

Axel took another long drag, then shook out the ashes from the cancer stick. He gave Roxas a sideways glance, then just shrugged.

"Keeps me warm," if the coat really wasn't enough.

"Even in summer...? In that coat?" Roxas asked, chuckling. He shook his head. "Doesn't matter to me if and why you smoke." He shrugged, then held a hand out. "Let me see your map."

Axel shrugged again, keeping the bud between his lips so he could dig into his sleeve. He pulled out a fresh sheet of paper, which was covered in a cleaner version of Axel's previous notes.

Roxas took it, looking it over. His eyes went wide, tilting his head and quirking a brow at the map.

_He's missing the hole, the underground tunnels, the abandoned train stations... He doesn't even have my own home..._ Roxas thought, rubbing a cheek.

"Come on. We'll start with this side of town."

"From the look on your face I can tell I'm far from finished," Axel said, a tinge of annoyance in his voice. "Had to get the hard job..." he murmured. "All right, lead the way."

"Actually, it's a pretty easy task... as long as you remember most of Twilight isn't what you can see." Roxas replied, walking away from the tip of the hill. "There's not really much to know on this side of town, but there are a few little secrets..."

Twilight Hill was a place for the richer set to live, where tourist could find a beauiful view and a relaxing walk. It wasn't nearly as big as the other side of Twilight Town, not even as big as the Market Place, but there was still some interesting things to discover. Roxas explained all this as he walked Axel all over that side of town, eventually making it to the little waterfall spring near the side-walk. None of the tourist ever really gave it any heed, or took a picture and left...

"But when you step into the water, the fall it's connected to creates a body double. It's like having a water clone." Roxas stepped into the water, showing what he meant. His double even moved when he did. "It's not actually water, it just looks like it. A trick of the sun. Doesn't seem important, but you said _all_secrets..."

Axel was already taking notes. On his map was little doodles of intriguing things Roxas had shown him, such as some moving tiles apparently caused by unknown tremors underneath Twilight Hill. He moved to where Roxas was standing, looking towards their reflections.

"Like a liquid mirror. Interesting."

"Watch out, your coat is getting wet." Roxas immediately pulled them both out. _Hm, it's kind of cold today after all... Maybe that wasn't such a good idea?_

"It'll dry. It's pretty durable: withstood snow storms and rains of fire," the redhead looked down at the smaller blond boy, "Anything else I should mark down?"

_Is he being sarcastic or serious? _Roxas blinked at Axel, but shook his head and decided not to ask.

"The allies on this side of town are... strange. What I mean is, you should always avoid going into an alley and be careful when you pass them by. Well, more like 'it' by. There's only one major alleyway on this side." Roxas replied, as if what Axel said wasn't strange at all, walking away from the stream.

"What do you mean by that?" Axel quirked a brow as he followed after Roxas. "Is the criminal rate that high or is it just some idiot always trying to mug the passerby?"

"Uh... no. We actually haven't had a problem with crime in years. In fact, nothing happens here... nothing normal like that anyway." Roxas stopped as he saw the big alleyway up ahead, which wasn't a long walk at all from the stream. "See that alley? That's the one I mean... And, um... Would you believe me if I said boulders randomly shoot out of it?"

If it were anyone else, they would've laughed. Axel just stared at Roxas as though he was just a wee bit off the deep end.

"... Boulders?"

Roxas nodded, walking forward again. He made Axel stop a few feet away.

"Uh... stay here, I'll show you... My friend and I discovered this little secret by accident when we were five. A lot of bandages had to be used that day..." Roxas walked into the alley cautiously. Once past the corner and actually inside the alley, boulders- about half the size of Roxas- began to shoot out from the wall at the end. The first rock flew by and disappeared into the adjacent wall behind Roxas.

Axel's eyes went a little wide, the ball-like boulder going right through the wall. "What the hell?"

Roxas jumped out of the way when the next round of rocks came out, two at a time now. He stood beside Axel, a little out of breath.

"They always surprise me..." He sighed. "It'll take a few minutes to stop and we have no idea why it happens, but it usually only starts if you actually walk into the alley. They don't kill you if you get hit... It just hurts. A lot. The really dumb kids around Twilight Town use it as a game."

"Flying boulders..." Axel made a note of it, shaking his head. "Your town is by far the most interesting I've been too. Any more surprises I should be aware of? Such as... I dunno, walking trees?"

"We'll get to them later." Roxas said casually, walking past the alley as the boulders finally stopped. "Hmm. Well, on this side of town, there really isn't that much..." He seemed to be trying to think of anything he might have missed before they moved back to the real part of town.

Axel actually chuckled, folding his paper back up. "Secret tunnels, maybe?"

"The tunnels are also on the other side." Roxas replied, tapping his chin. "I guess that's it for over here." He smiled up at Axel. "Let's head back to the other side of town now."

Axel shook his head, at least seeming amused, before walking with Roxas back towards the train station.

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><p>Abrupt end? Maybe. Yay updates anyway?<p> 


	8. A Date Sort Of Continued?

It's been a bit, I know, but I've been working on other fics and mah new jerb. :3 Yay new jobs! Yay new fics! Yay updates!

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><p>"... I'm a little hesitant about going into the forest." Roxas admitted as they began to finally wind down their tour of Twilight Town. "Lately, there's been some weird stuff happening there, like odd noises and screaming. It could be dangerous."<p>

"I already made a note of it." Axel replied casually, but quickly, as he followed beside his tour guide.

"Oh... What about the rip in the wall near the Market Place? I think I pointed it out to you already when we were there... It's been boarded up four times and torn down by nobody knows who each and every time, so they stopped trying. It's another entrance into the forest. Before the hole, people had to walk a long route around the edge of Twilight Town and through a long trail between the trees to get there." Roxas explained, even though Axel seemed to be less then interested. "The rip in the wall showed up about five years ago. The mansion at the end of the woods is considered to be haunted. No one has tried to go near it in a long time, except some dumb kids playing dare games."

Roxas walked into the last area they hadn't seen with caution. It was a place far below the city.

"Most of the tunnels down here have long since been abandoned," Roxas began as they slowly walked into the nearly hidden entrance beside the train station. Most wouldn't even notice it was there. "Be careful where you step... You can start to see again after a small walk."

Axel nodded, "right," he said, walking as close to Roxas as possible. It was hard to see as the tunnels grew darker and darker. He placed a gloved hand on Roxas's shoulder to keep from losing the blond. A few minutes later, they were out into the light. The underground tunnels were lit, probably for the tourists who wanted to explore them still.

Roxas put a hand over the one on his shoulder out of pure reaction, not letting it go right away even as they entered the light. He looked around, seeming confused.

"Hmm... Weird. It's not normally lit. Usually the only light you get is from the sewer drains on the ceiling coming from the sun."

"Something else unusual and super natural?" Axel suggested as he looked at Roxas's hand placed over his gloved one, expression neutral.

Roxas moved away from Axel, letting his hand go at last. He didn't even seem to notice he had held it... It would register later and he would squeal very loudly. He walked down the last of the steps... or attempted to. In the dark, he knew exactly where he was going and didn't even trip. Here in the light, the first step down a stair and he was slipping and falling face first into the floor.

_At least it wasn't a long fall. _"Ouch..." _I always forget about that step... Very lame, Roxas. Lame lame lame!_

Axel moved down the steps, leaning down to pick Roxas up.

"You all right?" Axel asked as he lifted the blond. "Your nose seems to be bleeding."

Roxas stood up, a little wobbily. He grabbed his nose, pinching it to see if it was broken. He winced, but only at the squish he could feel inside his nose. No pain, so it wasn't broken.

"I'm okay," he assured, chuckling nervously. "Sorry, that second step has a slide on it. I forgot to avoid it." Roxas blinked, looking up at Axel. It was just then, in a flash of a second, that he realized the guy was technically holding him right now. _Holding. Him._And very close. Roxas turned a pink, playing it off quickly as his injury by shaking his head and rubbing his face. "Uhhh... Th-Thanks."

Axel kept an arm around Roxas's waist, putting his other around him as if he were hugging the blond to dig into his sleeve again. Axel apparently kept a lot of things in there, taking out a handkerchief he never used. He placed it over Roxas's nose.

"You should be more careful."

Roxas turned a bit pinker as he was hugged and finally to a nice red shade as Axel touched his nose with the handkerchief, keeping it there himself after Axel placed it. Where the red-head's arm was on Roxas felt very warm, even comfortable. His waist felt on fire, though it wasn't hot. Something stirred in his pants.

"Thanks... I'll try, but I can't promise anything." He chuckled again, wiping his nose off gently. "You're acting oddly nice."

"Would you prefer it if I laughed at you and left you on the ground?" Axel said casually, thinking he wasn't being "oddly nice". "I was just concerned. Can you stand properly?"

"I just meant..." Roxas began, instantly feeling guilty, "you always seem so distant, like you could care less what happens to me. I honestly expected you to just wait for me to stand on my own, not help me up." He moved out of Axel's hold carefully. "I'm fine, thank you." He gave his usual little grin, walking forward again.

"I'm not a very social person, I admit that." Axel said softly, letting Roxas go. He looked at the blond thoughtfully. "... So these tunnels... They lead to different parts of town?"

"They lead everywhere. Some even go to Twilight Mansion in the forest... But those tunnels are boarded up so no one will go in." Roxas replied, thankful for the subject change.

Axel was back to taking notes on his spare sheet of paper, following Roxas through the tunnels. The smaller male showed him every entrance, exit, and even where the boarded exits were to the "haunted mansion". Axel didn't ask questions about the mansion, just about the rest of the tunnels. After an hour of exploring, they left the tunnels and were back in the streets. The redhead finished his note taking, folding the paper again.

"Anything more?" he asked.

"There's just the mansion... There's the rip in the wall that leads straight into the forest that leads to the Haunted Mansion. The trees there like to give dirty looks and whisper insults." Roxas shrugged. "But I already told you about that whole thing."

Axel nodded, then cleared his throat. "... so I suppose this wraps up the tour." He looked down at the new notes he had added onto the map. There seemed to be everything, "except here. There's a small alley-way area I haven't seen yet."

Roxas took a look at the map, surprised to see how clearly detailed it was.

_I was hoping to avoid the Meeting Place. I'm sure the others are there now... Maybe I can keep him away somehow? _"Avoid that place." Roxas said without any hesitation. "It's... dangerous, but not in a... boulder kind of way."

"Dangerous?" Axel gave Roxas a strange look. "How so?"

"Well... It depends on your definition... But just trust me, stay away from there, okay?" Roxas asked, looking sincere.

"Uh huh..." Axel crossed his arms. "Well, I'll have to have a look later. Dangerous or not, I need to mark it. So we'll just wrap up the tour from here then."

"...Well... how about you go there tomorrow? By yourself, I mean." Roxas replied, smiling again. "It's behind a ragged curtain and some uneven boards... make sure no one sees you go inside." He then looked a bit sheepish. "Um... About payment..."

Axel nodded. "Payment. Right. So did you think of what you wanted me to do?"

_Maybe I shouldn't ask? But what harm could it do? If he hates me for it, it'll be easy enough to avoid him for life..._ Roxas bit his lip, looking up into Axel's green eyes. _Here it goes, I guess..._

"Yes." Roxas moved forward, placing his hands on Axel's shoulder and pushing him against the brick wall behind him gently. "I want you... to kiss me. Or the other way around, it doesn't matter."

"Kiss you?" Axel's brows shot up, looking more then a little surprised. A few seconds of very tense waiting and Roxas watched as Axel seemed to relax, even smirk a little. Roxas almost couldn't believe it when Axel shrugged. "Why not?"

Axel leaned in toward Roxas and pressed their lips together. All breathing- all time ceased as Roxas found himself actually being kissed as he requested. It took a moment to believe it was real, completely shocked. He kissed back as soon as his senses returned three seconds into the kiss, keeping it as gentle and chaste as Axel did.

_He... he tastes like... cigarettes, chocolate, and... bananas... Not a bad combination at all!_

Axel lingered there for just a moment longer, moving off from Roxas's lips with a small "smack".

"There..." he murmured. "Thanks for helping me out today."

"N-No... No problem." Roxas replied, feeling a bit faint. He was cheering on the inside.

Axel ran a hand through his own hair, looking a little awkward for the first time since meeting Roxas, but Roxas was sure he also looked a little happy. "So I guess... I'll see you around..?"

Roxas shrugged, "that's the only time you ever see me." Roxas moved off of Axel, standing normally again. He was grinning like a goof, unable to hide it. "I... I need to go though. I have some friends waiting for me."

"Right..." Axel moved off the wall, licking his lips.

For a moment, the two just stood there, looking at each other. Neither seemed very sure of who should leave first, not until Roxas smiled at Axel. He leapt forward without any warning and gave his cheek a kiss, then ran off to disappear quickly around a corner like before.

Axel blinked, once more rigid as Roxas ran off. He slumped, face now a nice shade of pink. He put his hood over his head, hearing laughing coming from somewhere. He gave the birdy in that general direction of the noise, before walking off to report his results.

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><p>Okay, sooooo some peeps have asked me about why the "Black Cloaks" are getting a bad reputation. You'll notice more and more there doesn't seem to be a REAL reason, other then they're all just wearing odd clothes during a hot time of year in a small town-ish sort of area.<p>

People dislike what is different or what they can't understand, and often assumptions are made when large groups of people that appear to be in cliques wear the same things in inappropriate times or places. Like, hooded black cloaks... one person wears it as if to hide his/her identity, people think that person is evil somehow. Many people do it, they think big group of evil.

Get it?


	9. The Meeting Spot

So, things might finally get to pick up again in a week or so. My training at my new job comes to an end is about 8 days! Yaaay, go meeeee!

This chapter is may not seem relevant to most, but it does lead up and give importance to the next two chapters. x3

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><p>Roxas ran all the way back to the meeting spot where his friends were waiting, a bit out of breath and grinning from ear to ear. He stumbled inside once he arrived, not caring as he fell to the ground- just standing right back up again as if he hadn't, then moved to sit down on a dirty old lounge chair across from Olette and Pence.<p>

"Hi, guys."

"Hello," they greeted simultaneously. Pence passed Roxas a sea-salt icecream.

"You look really happy," Pence commented.

"Did Mr. Tall and Sexy cop a feel?" Olette grinned.

Hayner rolled his eyes, licking his ice cream up. "Pervert."

Roxas shook his head. "No, nothing like that." He took the ice cream gratefully, sighing softly as he began to lick the cold edge as if it were the best thing he had ever tasted.

Olette ignored Hayner. "Speaking of which, where is he? You were supposed to bring him by after your date."

"First of all, it wasn't a date... I was just showing him around Twilight Town." Roxas clarified. "And then he had to go somewhere."

"Aww..." Olette seemed disappointed at that. "Well, next time then." She licked her icecream.

"So you had a good time then," Pence said. "Tell us about it."

Hayner yawned, throwing the stick to his ice cream aside once he was done, then just leaning back and relaxing.

"It wasn't a big deal... Just showed him around, I fell down and hurt my nose- he helped me up..." Roxas grinned wide again. "I asked him to kiss me, and he did."

"Awww!" Olette squealed. "I wish I was there to see it..." she pouted suddenly. "But I'm really happy for you Roxas. So, second date?"

"Wasn't really a date, Olette..." Pence reminded.

"They were alone exploring the town and getting to know each other. And they kissed. It was a date." Olette said firmly. "So second date?"

"No idea." Roxas stated simply. He shrugged. "It's Hayner's turn tomorrow, right?" He turned to look at his friend. "Where are we going?"

Hayner shrugged. "I haven't decided yet..."

"You have all night to come up with a decision," Pence said. "You can let us know tomorrow when we get back together."

"Around noon right?" Olette said, looking suddenly worried. "Mom wants me to go shopping with her in the morning..."

"Uhhh..." Roxas went a little wide-eyed, hiding his panic. _If we meet up during the day, Axel might be around. He didn't say when he was going to come by..._"Hey, didn't you say there was a hockey game in China Town you wanted to see?"

"Yeah... But I'd rather not use what little munny I have on another big trip." Hayner replied casually.

"How about seeing the circus?"

"Lame."

"Bowling?"

"No..."

"Hanging out here is just fine too," Pence suggested. "We spent a lot of time just going everywhere. Its the last few days, why not relax?"

"That sounds nice," Olette said. "I can bring my mom's homemade fudge."

Pence perked up at that. "Mmm.."

Roxas felt a bit doomed. "Well, why not relax where we can actually see some sun? Nothing but shade here..."

Hayner shrugged. "I like just hanging out here."

Roxas whined.

Hayner quirked a brow at his friend. "What's with you?"

"Yea, you're acting strange," Pence commented. "What's wrong? You feel okay?"

Roxas just sighed. "Okay... I'm going to be honest. I'm afraid to let you guys meet Axel... And he's coming here, tomorrow during the day, to finish up a map he's making of Twilight Town. This little area we're sitting in is the last of what he needs."

"Didn't we go over this?" Olette said. "We told you we're totally cool with you dating him. As long as you like him, we'll like him too."

"And a map..?" Pence blinked. "Why is he making a map? Does he get lost easily?"

"Well... He said it was his 'job'. And mentioned he traveled a lot..." Roxas replied. "And I know, but I also know you guys very well. Hayner will _definitely_get into a fight with him-" Hayner just 'Hmph'-ed, "Pence probably won't care, but Olette- you'll either fan girl all over him or you'll go into lecture mode... No offense."

"Job, huh?" Pence said, but just shrugged it off in the end.

"I can behave," Olette said. "If I wanted to, I mean..."

"I know you could, Olette. I've seen you at your parents' dinner parties. But afterward, that's what I really fear from you..." Roxas looked at Hayner. "And we all know Hayner will simply be Hayner." He chuckled.

Hayner just rolled his eyes like normal. "Should I just _not_come then?"

"No, you should..."

"I'm sure its not that big a big deal," Pence said. "I trust Roxas's judge of character. If this Axel person is a nice guy, and Roxas likes him, we should all put in our best efforts to be nice and welcoming. Right guys?"

"Right," Olette nodded.

"Whatever." Hayner stated gruffly.

Roxas laughed. "You sound like your uncle Leon!" He felt a little calmer now, but still... _What if Olette starts asking questions about the 'date'? It wasn't a date, and Axel might think I'm a lot creepier then I seems... Well, I kind of am to a point, but still!_

_Maybe Axel will just forget to come?_

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><p>Also, I keep getting questions still about "What's up with the cloaks?". If you aren't going to read my author notes, just read the fic to find out.<p> 


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